Former Gator Murphy arrested in Gainesville

By Kimberly Moore WilmothStaff Writer

Published: Saturday, April 2, 2011 at 6:01 a.m.

Last Modified: Sunday, April 3, 2011 at 3:38 p.m.

Gainesville Police arrested former standout Gator wide receiver Louis Morris Murphy Jr. early Sunday morning, charging him with possession of a drug without a valid prescription, failure to obey a police officer and resisting arrest without violence -- all misdemeanors.

Murphy, who plays for the Oakland Raiders, was taken into custody just after midnight.

Gainesville Police Officer Thomas Harrison said he spotted Murphy's Cadillac Escalade at 100 SW First St., with the stereo playing loudly. Harrison said he told Murphy, 23, to pull over, but then Murphy continued driving to a city parking lot, where he and his passengers got out of the SUV and walked away.

Harrison flipped on his lights and ordered Murphy and the passengers to stop. Harrison said Murphy refused to present identification and demanded to know why Harrison stopped him. Harrison said Murphy continued to refuse to show his ID and so Harrison attempted to place him in handcuffs, but, he said, Murphy refused to put his hands behind his back. It took three officers to place the 6-foot-2-inch, 180-pound NFL player into custody.

Harrison said Murphy consented to a search of his vehicle, where officers found a “non-labeled prescription bottle containing 11 individual pills later identified as Viagra.” Murphy could not provide a prescription for it and allegedly told the officer that he had peeled the label off of the bottle “because he did not want his girlfriend to know he had a prescription for it.”

This is Murphy's second arrest in Gainesville. The first one came in 2006, when he was taken into custody for possession of less than 20 grams of marijuana. In a plea deal, the state attorney's office later declined to prosecute if Murphy completed 12 1/2 hours of community service or paid $125 to “Project Payback,” a juvenile program designed to monitor and enforce restitution to the courts.

According to a Sports Illustrated article, Murphy vowed to turn his life around when his mother was diagnosed with cancer a second time in 2007. She died in on Valentine's Day 2008. He grieved in the butterfly garden at UF's Museum of Natural History when he worked there as an intern for part of his sports event management degree. He was also captain of UF's football team that year, scoring a touchdown from a Tim Tebow pass in the BCS championship game.

Murphy volunteers in his off hours. Last year, he spoke with inmates at the Pinellas County Jail annex in Clearwater, telling them that everyone deserves a second chance.

Murphy's father is a pastor and he has said publicly that his faith shapes his life.

<p>Gainesville Police arrested former standout Gator wide receiver Louis Morris Murphy Jr. early Sunday morning, charging him with possession of a drug without a valid prescription, failure to obey a police officer and resisting arrest without violence -- all misdemeanors.</p><p>Murphy, who plays for the Oakland Raiders, was taken into custody just after midnight.</p><p>Gainesville Police Officer Thomas Harrison said he spotted Murphy's Cadillac Escalade at 100 SW First St., with the stereo playing loudly. Harrison said he told Murphy, 23, to pull over, but then Murphy continued driving to a city parking lot, where he and his passengers got out of the SUV and walked away.</p><hr/>
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<hr /><p>Harrison flipped on his lights and ordered Murphy and the passengers to stop. Harrison said Murphy refused to present identification and demanded to know why Harrison stopped him. Harrison said Murphy continued to refuse to show his ID and so Harrison attempted to place him in handcuffs, but, he said, Murphy refused to put his hands behind his back. It took three officers to place the 6-foot-2-inch, 180-pound NFL player into custody.</p><p>Harrison said Murphy consented to a search of his vehicle, where officers found a “non-labeled prescription bottle containing 11 individual pills later identified as Viagra.” Murphy could not provide a prescription for it and allegedly told the officer that he had peeled the label off of the bottle “because he did not want his girlfriend to know he had a prescription for it.”</p><p>This is Murphy's second arrest in Gainesville. The first one came in 2006, when he was taken into custody for possession of less than 20 grams of marijuana. In a plea deal, the state attorney's office later declined to prosecute if Murphy completed 12 1/2 hours of community service or paid $125 to “Project Payback,” a juvenile program designed to monitor and enforce restitution to the courts.</p><p>According to a Sports Illustrated article, Murphy vowed to turn his life around when his mother was diagnosed with cancer a second time in 2007. She died in on Valentine's Day 2008. He grieved in the butterfly garden at UF's Museum of Natural History when he worked there as an intern for part of his sports event management degree. He was also captain of UF's football team that year, scoring a touchdown from a Tim Tebow pass in the BCS championship game.</p><p>Murphy volunteers in his off hours. Last year, he spoke with inmates at the Pinellas County Jail annex in Clearwater, telling them that everyone deserves a second chance.</p><p>Murphy's father is a pastor and he has said publicly that his faith shapes his life.</p><p><i>Contact Moore Wilmoth at 352-374-5036 or kimberly.moore@nytrng.com.</i></p>